Improvement in windmills



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- Wind-Mill. N0. 160,922. v PatentedMarch'16Q1875.

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fyyym gawd v 4C. Invefzoli' ATENT GEORGE LUCAS, OF PEKIN, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN WINDMILLS.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. IGMQQ, dated March 16,i875; application filed i February 9, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that l, GEORGE H. LUcAs, of Pekin, in the county of Tazewelland State of Illinois, have invented certain Improvements in Windmills,of which the following is a speciiication:

This invention'relates to that class of windmills the wheels of whichhave sails capable of automatically adjusting themselves to stand moreor less in the wind, according to its force, and thus to govern thevelocity of rotation ofthe wheel. My improvement consists, rst, ofcertain novel combinations of devices for governing the position of thesails; secondly, in making the sails concave in cross-section, thecurvature being regular and the same in degree from end to end, so thatthe sails, which are tapering in width, as usual, will constitute truetapering segments of a cylinder. This particular form .I have found tobe exceedingly effective, and aside from this possesses the advantage ofgreater ease of manufacture as compared with sails presenting irregularcurves.

In the annexed drawings, Figure l is a vertical section of my improvedwindmill. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same. Figs. 3 and 4 are detailviews, hereinafter more particularly referred to.

The same letters of reference are used in all the figures inthedesignation ofidentical parts.

The Wind-wheel and its connections are supported upon the top of atower, A, a strong frame-work of wood or iron, suitably secured at itsbase. The turn-table B, which supports the shaft C1 of the wind-wheel Gin bearings b b, rests upon a series of rollers, d, which run upon acircular track, a, fixed upon the top of the tower, and turn on armsradially projecting from a ring, D. The turn-table has a circulardownwardly-projecting ange, b1, which lits snugly in the circularopening in the track a, and serves as the axis of the roller-frame D,which enoircles it. Two or more brackets, b2, are fixed to the underside of the turntable, hooking under the projecting edge of track a toproperly hold the turn-table down to its seat on the rollers d. The rimand the hub of the wind wheel are connected by a number of spokes, asusual, o n which a flanged ring, O2, is fastened. The sails E turn onstuds or journals e, projecting from their respective ends,

near their outer rectangular edge, in bearings in the ian ged ring O2and the rim of the windwheel. The sails are tapering in width, asclearly shown, and are bent transversely upon a regular curve from endto end, so that theyr are in fact true tapering segments of a hollow.cylinder. Their contour is most clearly illustrated in Fig. 4. Theseveral sails are also pivoted at c to an encircling-rin g, F, which isconnected by links f to a series of levers, G, fulcrumed at about theirmid-length on arms g, projecting from the spokes of the wind-wheel, andall united at their inner converging ends by a sleeve, G', upon theshaft C1 of thewheel. By-sliding this sleeve upon the shaft the levers Gwill be oscillated, and the ring F actuated so as to turn all the sailssimultaneously on their journals e, and set them more or less in thewind. The sleeve G is controlled by a sliding shifter, H, (best seen inFig. 3,) which is connected to the arm i of the toggle I, the other arml of which is pivoted at its outer end to a iixed lug, i2, on theturn-table B. By straightening the toggle I more or less the sleeve Gcan be properly adjusted by theshifter H, and the sails arranged to takethe required amount of wind. To provide for an automatic adjustment ofthe sails according to the force of the wind, a spring, K, isintroduced, fixed at one end to a standard, K', erected on theturn-table B', and reaching with its loose end into an eye, h, on theshifter H. The spring is so arranged and its resistance so calculatedthat it will, through the intermediate means described, hold the sailsfully in the Wind until the wheel attains its desired maximum speed. Ifthe wind should then increase in strength, it will turn the sailsagainst the force ofthe spring sufcientlyout ofthewind to prevent anyexcess beyond the proposed maximum speed, and as the wind decreases instrength, the spring will gradually return the sails to their originalpositions. One or more springs may be used for this` purpose, as well assprings diiferent from the particular one shown. The tail-vane L isrigidly connected to the turn-table in line with the wheelshaft. All thecomponent parts of the wheel,

the turn-table and connections, and the tailvane are preferably made ofmetal, the sails and vane of sheet-iron. The shaft Gl extends rrrcn.

quite a distance beyond the Wheel, affording support for braces G2. Thestandard K and the tailvane are also suitably braced to the turn-tableand to each other, as clearly shown. The inner end of the wheel-shaft G1carries a erank-disk, m, for operating the pump-rod N through the pitmanM, in the usual manner. From the arm t" of the toggle I a rod, O,reaches down intothe tower, and is connected to a sleeve, o, on thepump-rod N, the sleeve being in turn connected by rods O1 and O2 to ahand-lever, P, at the base of the tower, through means of which leverthe toggle may be operated for the purpose of adj Listing the sails byhand.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

l. rlhe combination of the sails E, ring F,

links f, levers G, sleeve G', shifter H, and spring K, substantially asand for the purpose specilied.

2. The combination of the sails E, ring F, links f, levers G, sleeve G',shifter H, spring K, and the toggle I, and hand-lever P, withintermediate connections, substantially as and for the' purposesspecied.

- 3. The sails E, in the form of tapering segments of a hollow cylinder,substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specicaton in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE H. LUCAS.

Witnesses:

LoUIs A. WILDHACK, FRANK SHAW.

